i<jsu\cL 



| LIBRARY O F CONGRES S. \ 
I ^r- B V 4-540 || 

f #j 

({UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,|| 









^ 






BY 



THE LATE REV. MARTIN MOORE, 



OF BOSTON, MASS. 



"Come, and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he 
hath done for my soul." 




PUBLISHED BY THE 
AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 

150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YORK. 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, by the 
American Tract Society, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court 
uf the United States for the Southern District of New York. 



CONTENTS. 



I. "A brand plucked from the burning " - 7 

II. Primitive piety revived - 12 

III. Twenty-five years ago - 15 

IV. A four-days' meeting - 18 

V. ' * All the orthodoxy in town " „- 21 

VI. At evening-time it shall be light 25 

VII. The influence of example - - 27 

VIII. ' ' One soweth, and another reapeth "-- 31 

IX. A whole family saved-- - — 35 

X. ' ' The wrath of man shall praise Him " 38 

XI. Individual responsibility •' - 42 

XII. Conversion in a potash kettle 46 

XIII. The fearful made strong 50 

XIV. Edwards' sermon on the eternity of hell tor- 

ments 52 

XV. Personal effort 56 

XVI. "Build the old wastes" 59 

XVII. ' ' God moves in a mysterious way " - 63 

XVIII. Search the Scriptures 67 

XIX. Mr. Whitefield's convert - 71 

XX. A converted Irishman — 75 

XXI. A man's foes are they of his own household--- 79 
Conclusion 82 



INTRODUCTION. 

The Holy Scriptures contain many sketch- 
es of ancient saints of God. These were 
written as our " ensamples." 

How can we have so clear a view of faith, 
producing works, as by studying the life of 
the patriarch Abraham? " Abraham believed 
God, and it was counted to him for right- 
eousness." This faith enabled him, in pur- 
pose, to offer up his son Isaac as a burnt- 
offering. In the records of the lives of Isaac 
and Jacob, the same traits are conspicuous. 
These and others "all died in faith, not 
having received the promises, but having 
seen them afar off, and were persuaded of 
them, and embraced them, and confessed that 
they were strangers and pilgrims .on the 
earth." 

Christian experience, and practice growing 
out of it, are essentially the same in every 



6 INTRODUCTION. 

age, and the records of the past are inval- 
uable in maintaining and extending vital 
godliness. The late Dr. Bethune told me, 
that information had been received of eleven 
hundred persons who were converted by 
reading the life of his grandmother, Mrs. 
Isabella Graham. Such persons being dead 
yet speak, and will continue to speak to every 
generation as they arise, until time is no 
longer. 

The facts here recorded in brief notices rff 
individuals, occurred chiefly in connection 
with the writer's ministry. They are given 
mainly as illustrations of the work of divine 
grace which have come under his own ob- 
servation, in the hope that they may lead 
others to Jesus. If they shall be blessed in 
bringing any to the saving knowledge of 
Him, the writer's desires will be gratified 
and God glorified. M. M. 



PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



i. 

"| Brawl ptucW fpm % Itowwg/' 

In N- , Massachusetts, resided a farmer 

who had gradually fallen into habits of in- 
temperance. He had taken the viper into 
his bosom, and harbored it there until its 
poison was infused into every nerve and fibre 
of his system. His hands were swollen so 
that the skin was cracked open. Much of his 
time was spent in riding from one grop-shop 
to another. He became, like other drunk- 
ards, a profane swearer, a smoker, and a neg- 
lecter of public worship. These habits had 
been fastened on him for twenty years. As 
far as man could see, his case was more hope- 
less than that of any other individual in town. 
But God's ways are not as man's ways, nor 



8 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

God's thoughts as man's thoughts. In a time 
of revival it was said of this man, " Behold, 
he prayeth." A new era was to commence 
in his life. 

At the annual town-meeting, after the min- 
ister had opened the meeting with prayer 
according to the custom of those days, Mr. 

E came to him, asking what he should 

do. They went at once into a retired part of 
the house, and the pastor asked, " What is 
the matter?" 

Mr. E replied, " Matter enough, I tell 

you; I have not been able to sleep much 
these three weeks." 

" But how came you to feel so ?" asked the 
minister. 

Mr. B replied, " Tou know that E ," 

a son of his eighteen years of age, "and F ," 

a domestic, "have been converted. I have 
been watching them pretty closely I assure 
you, and you may depend upon it that there 
is something in it. If these people who are 
moral must be born again, what will become 
of me ? Oh what will become of me ?" 

The reply was, " You must leave off drink- 
ing rum, or you will go to hell." 



BRAND FROM THE BURNING. 9 

At subsequent interviews, lie told his min- 
ister that Christ had twice manifested him- 
self to him, and that he was never to see him 
again until he saw him enthroned in glory ; 
that he told him not to drink any more 
rum. 

His minister raised no question about these 
manifestations, hoping they might issue in 
the desired reform. 

From that time he was a temperate man. 
His cure was perfect. He also abandoned 
his profanity and his smoking. -He was in 
every sense a new man. He became a con- 
stant attendant on the ordinary and special 
means of grace. He visited a young minis- 
ter, recently settled in another part of the 
town, to see if he had any true religion ; and 
at the close of the interview he said, " Mr. 

T , you would make a good minister if you 

were born again." 

His reformation was not partial and tem- 
porary, but thorough and permanent. He 
held on his course more than thirty years, 
until the day of his death. The community 
in which he lived admired the grace of God 
manifested in his conversion, life, and death. 



10 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

He was truly "a brand plucked from the 
burning." 

This history teaches us important lessons : 

1. Intemperance cannot be cured by in- 
dulging in moderate drinking. In 1812, 
the Massachusetts " Society for Suppressing 
Intemperance" was formed to prevent people 
from drinking too much. Those who formed 
this association felt the evils of intemper- 
ance, but did not know how to free them- 
selves from it. Efforts were made to reg- 
ulate the use of ardent spirits : but amid all 
these efforts the evils still increased. 

In 1826, especially by the labors of Rev. 
Dr. Justin Edwards, the doctrine of total ab- 
stinence was introduced as the only infallible 
remedy for intemperance. This remedy was 
prescribed for Mr. K , and effected an im- 
mediate and permanent cure. He used fre- 
quently to say, " Touch not, taste not, handle 
not." 

2. True religion is the most effectual sup- 
port of the pledge of total abstinence. Many 
drunkards have tried to abstain from strong 
drink in their own strength ; but after an in- 
effectual struggle, the unhappy individuals 



BRAND FROM THE BURNING. 11 

have returned to their former habits. Many 
reformed inebriates have said they had no 
safety but in becoming truly religious men. 

3. Example is one of the most powerful 
preachers. Mr. E , like drunkards gen- 
erally, seldom went within the sound of the 
preacher's voice; but in watching two young 
Christians for some time, when they were un- 
conscious of any such observation, he "took 
knowledge of them, that they had been with 
Jesus." It becomes us to inquire, What is 
the influence of our example? Are our daily 
walk and conversation such, that when those 
who are about us watch for our halting, they 
can find nothing against us except concern- 
ing the law of our God? Then we are the 
light of the world. If we let our light shine, 
others will see our good works, and glorify 
our Father who is in heaven. 



12 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



II. 

Those conversant with tlie early history of 
New England know the character of the men 
who laid the foundations of its churches. 
" God sifted three kingdoms, that he might 
send over choice grain into this wilderness." 
They received the doctrines of the Bible with- 
out emendation, or intermixture of human 
traditions. Their practice grew out of their 
faith. They observed as holy time only what 
God had made holy. This desire to restore 
religion to its primitive purity obtained for 
them the name of "Puritans." This name 
was given them by their enemies as a re- 
proach ; but in this name they gloried. For 
a century and a half, the New England 
churches with great unanimity adhered to the 
pilgrim faith. 

The leaven of error was very gradually in- 
troduced. It was brought in as the apostle 
predicted that it would be, " privily, denying 



PKIMITIVE PIETY. 13 

the Lord that bought them." It began by 
suppressing the truth. First one doctrine 
was omitted, then another, and then another. 
When the people had nothing positive taught 
them from the pulpit, they were prepared to 
receive errors as they might be presented. 
^This was especially the case when they were 
stated in such forms as permitted them to 
retain the carnal mind that is "enmity 
against God," and yet, gave assurance of 
heaven. In this way the "great apostasy" 
was gradually introduced. 

But when the enemy came in like a flood, 
the Lord lifted up a standard against him. 
In most towns there were left a few, "ac- 
cording to the election of grace," who still 
adhered to the primitive faith. These, in 
many towns in the ancient commonwealth of 
Massachusetts, united in churches to bring 
the people back to the ancient faith. God 
graciously smiled on these efforts. The Holy 
Ghost returned with his convincing and con- 
verting power. 

It had been my privilege to exchange oc- 
casionally with the pastor of one of these ex- 
iled churches ; and after an interval of fifteen 



14 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

years I visited this clrarcli again, and in pass- 
ing from house to house found two men who 
informed me that the last sermon that I 
preached there was instrumental of their 
conversion. The sermon was founded on the 
words of Paul, " I was alive without the law 
once ; but when the commandment came, si^ 
revived, and I died." 

"Let those who sow in sadness wait 
Till the fair harvest come ; 
They shall confess their sheaves are great, 
And shont the blessing home. 

"Though seed lie buried long in dust, 
It sha'n't deceive their hope ; 
The precious grain can ne'er be lost, 
For grace insures the crop." 



TWENTY- FIVE YEARS AGO. 15 

III. 

A faithful minister will never know in this 
world all the good he accomplishes. He may 
glean some of the results of his labor in in- 
dividual cases of saints edified, or sinners 
converted ; but all the good impressions that 
he has made by precept and example will 
never be known until the secrets of all hearts 
are revealed. 

The late Eev. Jotham Sewall of Maine, on 
once visiting Portland, had made an appoint- 
ment to preach on his return home. But a 
violent rain-storm suddenly swelled a river he 
must cross, and carried away the bridge, so 
that he could not pass. 

The hotel-keeper invited him to spend the 
night with him and preach. He did so, 
and in his sermon discussed the subject of 
the saints' rest, and concluded with a descrip- 
tion of the awful state of those who are ex- 
cluded from that rest. 



16 PASTOBAL REMINISCENCES. 

Two travellers who had been detained by 
the storm heard him. They arose early in 
the morning, and went on their way. After 
riding on for a while in silence, one of them 
said to the other, "I fear what that old gen- 
tleman said last night is true." The other 
responded, " That is just what I was think- 
ing." This sermon resulted in the conversion 
of both of these travellers. 

Some years after, " Father Sewall" was re- 
turning from the Boston anniversaries, and 
between Newburyport and Portsmouth a man 
at work in the field hailed him. " Father 
Sewall, is that you?" "Yes," said the old 
gentleman. "Do you remember preaching 
at a hotel one stormy night, and that two 
travellers were present?" "Yes," said Mr. 
Sewall. " I was one of them, and one of my 
neighbors was the other. That sermon re- 
sulted, we trust, in the conversion of us both. 
"We have often talked over the subject, and 
thought how surprised you would be to meet 
us in heaven. "When I saw you coming, I was 
determined that you should know it in this 
world." 

This no doubt rejoiced the heart of the good 



TWENTY- FIVE YEARS AGO. 17 

man, and was a fresli incentive to labor on in 
his Master's cause. 

Some years ago I visited Saratoga Springs, 
and returned to Boston by way of New York. 
On the passage over Long Island, the con- 
ductor of the train came and took a seat by 
my side, and asked if I remembered preach- 
ing at N— — W from a certain text, 

twenty-five years before? I told him I Md 
occasionally preached in that place on ex- 
change, but did not recall that text. He re- 
plied, " I was a boy fourteen or fifteen years 
old, and shall never forget it ; it was the 
means of my conversion." 

When the secrets of all hearts shall be re- 
vealed, what wonderful developments will be 
made. It shall be written of this man, that 
he was born in Zion. He became the super- 
intendent of a Boston Sabbath-school, and 
still lives to work in the cause of Christ. 
This announcement filled me with wonder, 
joy, and gratitude. 



18 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



IV. 

The year 1831 was memorable for the out- 
pouring of the Holy Spirit upon American 
churches. Much of the work of God was 
carried on by the instrumentality of " pro- 
tracted meetings." They seemed for a time 
to be eminently blessed. A four-days' meet- 
ing in my own church was the first meeting 
of the kind held within the bounds of that 
clerical association. Efforts were made to 
prepare the church for these solemnities, and 
a day of fasting and prayer was observed the 
week previous. 

At the close of the first day of the meeting, 
the members of the church made a public 
confession of their sins, and renewed their 
covenant obligations. Many attended from 
the adjacent towns, and the house was filled 
until the close of the services. As the result of 
the meetings, above fifty souls, in the judg- 
ment of charity, were converted. I do not 



A FOUB-DAYS' MEETING. 19 

mean to include stony-ground hearers, who 
received the word anon with joy, but endured 
only for a while, having no root in themselves, 
but refer to those who gave evidence of a 
permanent change of heart. 

When the church came out into the aisles 
to confess their sins and renew covenant ob- 
ligations, a young man was sitting in the 
gallery, whom the scene deeply affected. On 
the next day he came into the inquiry meet- 
ing. With eyes suffused with tears, he said 
he had not slept the last night. I asked 
what troubled him. He replied, " When I saw 
the church yesterday confess their sins and 
renew their covenant with God, I knew that 
they had led upright and consistent lives, 
and I thought to myself, if it is necessary for 
them to do this, why is it not still more nec- 
cessary for me ? I have never confessed my 
sins, nor entered into covenant with God. It 
was these thoughts that kept me from sleep- 
ing.'' He continued in this state of distress 
for two or three days, and then found peace 
in believing. 

Another young man could not be prevailed 
upon to attend the meeting until the third 



20 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

day, and then came with a determination not 
to be brought under the influence of religion. 
The preacher had not proceeded far before 
this young man began to tremble for his 
safety. He soon yielded his heart to Christ. 
On the morning of the fourth day a note 
was read of this import : " Eleven young men 
of this congregation whose attention has been 
arrested since the commencement of this 
meeting, and who hope that they have sub- 
mitted their hearts to God, desire prayers 
that they maybe strengthened and confirmed 
in their Christian course." To the best of 
my knowledge, only one of these young men 
has apostatized. Similar success attended 
other protracted meetings in the same region. 
God then blessed these means of grace. He 
is still a sovereign God, and uses what means 
he pleases to advance his cause in the world. 



ALL THE ORTHODOXY. 21 



V. 

About forty years ago I met a brother be- 
longing to the First church in E , who in- 
formed me that he was the "only orthodox 
man in the town." He became such not by 
any influence exerted upon him in the church 
where the apostolic Eliot once preached ; but 
being on a visit in a town at a distance, he 
slept with an orthodox minister who was 
faithful to him. This interview resulted in 
his conversion. 

In some of the towns in the " Old Colony," 
indeed in nearly all of them bordering on 
Massachusetts bay between Boston and Ply- 
mouth, primitive Christianity had sunk very 
low. The essential doctrines of the gospel 
had been grievously suppressed, and errors 
subversive of the gospel introduced. A form 
of religion had been retained^ but without the 
power. " Ichabod, the glory has departed," 
was written upon the walls of the sanctu- 



22 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

aries. Tet even in these towns there were 
cases of true piety. 

In the town where I was pastor, was an 
aged female who came from a place adjacent, 
where in her childhood she had learned the 
Assembly's Catechism. The great evangelical 
truths taught in this summary were blessed 
to her salvation. "When I first knew her she 
was more than fourscore years old. She had 
clear and consistent views of the doctrines of 
the Bible. It was a common saying that 
" all the orthodoxy in town was embodied in 
Aunt B B ." 

"When an effort was made to build up this 
old waste place, and reestablish the thrown- 
down family altars, she hailed with joy the 
gospel of the pilgrims. She was almost 
ready to say, with the aged Simeon, "Lord, 
now lettest thy servant depart in peace ; for 
mine eyes have seen thy salvation." The 
last years of her life were cheered by the 
sympathy and kindness of a Christian church. 

This narrative shows the importance of 
giving religious instruction to the young. 
This venerable mother in Israel, in childhood 
was faithfully instructed in the truths and 



ALL THE ORTHODOXY. 23 

doctrines of the Bible. This, like an anchor 
in a storm, kept her safe amid the flood of 
error that threatened to carry her away. 
When the enemy came in as a flood, her 
early instruction was the standard that the. 
Lord lifted up against him. Mothers should 
inculcate the great truths of revealed religion 
upon the opening minds of their children 
when sitting in the house and when walking 
by the way, rising up and sitting down. 
Many a man in middle life has remembered 
maternal instructions when he has been far 
away upon the ocean or travelling in foreign 
climes. John Newton could never forget the 
instructions of his mother, even w r hen engaged 
in the slave-trade. Mothers must " sow be- 
side all waters." 

This venerable mother in Israel lived many 
years without any to sympathize with her. 
Her neighbors and friends were all hostile to 
the religion of Jesus. She did not conform 
to this world, but endured as seeing Him who 
is invisible. She abode in Christ, and Christ 
abode in her. Her life was " hid with Christ 
in God." Divine truth was " a well of water 
springing up into everlasting life." Chris- 



24 



PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



tians surrounded by associates who are gov- 
erned by the spirit and customs of this 
world, must draw their life from Christ. 
This will make them obedient disciples. It 
will make them what they ought to be, " a 
peculiar people." 




IT SHALL BE LIGHT. 25 



VI. 

gt %wnw$4%mt U $ Wl fa pglii 

In a parish of the " Old Colony," many in- 
fluences adverse to the gospel had been at 
work. These influences had weakened the 
church and scattered its members. Many 
withdrew from the fellowship of the church, 
under the delusion that it was a corrupt or- 
ganization. They claimed to be more holy 
than others, and yet were themselves the 
servants of sin. The sirocco of the desert 
seemed to have swept over the place. It was 
a serious question whether the church should 
disband, or attempt to rebuild the walls that 
were thrown down. They could do but little 
in a pecuniary way. I entered upon my 
labors among them with fear and trembling, 
and worked on several months without signs 
of resuscitation. 

„The first indication of the movement of the 
Holy Spirit was at the close of a Sabbath 
evening prayer-meeting. Two young ladies 



26 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

remained who were found to be deeply affect- 
ed with a sense of their sins, and special 
prayer was offered for them. The next 
morning one of the young ladies was rejoic- 
ing in hope. 

This was the commencement of a precious 
revival. The teacher of the high-school told 
me that his pupils had been so engrossed 
in a dancing-school, that they could think of 
little else than amusement ; but they began 
one after another to attend the inquiring and 
prayer meetings, and continued until nearly 
every one became interested. 

Between thirty and forty expressed hope ; 
many of whom are still going on their w r ay 
rejoicing. 

One of the young converts who was pro- 
pounded to the church, died full of hope be- 
fore the day when she was to have been re- 
ceived. Instead of uniting with the church 
militant, she went to join the church tri- 
umphant. 



INFLUENCE OF EXAMPLE. 27 



VII. 

" No man liveth unto himself, and no man 
dieth unto himself." There is no man, how- 
ever humble his station in life, who does not 
exert an influence upon others. In the early- 
part of my ministry, I read in the Boston 
Recorder an account of a revival in North 
Bridgewater. The pastor on the Sabbath 
invited any person who wished to converse 
on the subject of religion to call at his house 
that evening; but to his great disappoint- 
ment, no one accepted the invitation. At 
the close of the services on the next Sab- 
bath, he stated the fact. He then repeated 
the invitation. Several came, and ia work of 
grace was commenced, which resulted in the 
conversion of more than a hundred souls. 

Seeing the results of this effort, I made a 
similar proposition to my people. To my 
astonishment a number of the youth called 



28 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

at my house, who were in various stages of 
religious inquiry. These were the first in- 
quiring meetings I had known in modern 
times. These meetings have since spread 
over the land, and have become a stated 
1 means of grace. 

"When I found that so large a number of 
my people were awakened, the next Sabbath 
I preached from the text, " Surely the Lord 
is in this place, and I knew it not." 

Among the inquirers was a man of more 
than ordinary intelligence and education. 
He said that he went to school to my prede- 
cessor, and became intimately acquainted with 
him. Upon a careful observance of his daily 
life, he was convinced that there was a re- 
ality in religion. He " took knowledge of him 
that he had been with Jesus." He was con- 
vinced that the pastor possessed something 
that he did not. He was led by the influence 
of his example to seek the same religion that 
was the governing principle in his pastor's 
, heart. He sought and found Jesus precious 
to his soul. 

His life testified to the genuineness of his 
religion. He was the first superintendent of 



INFLUENCE OE EXAMPLE. 29 

our Sabbath-school. He was a teacher of 
children in the elements of useful knowledge, 
but he also viewed man as immortal, and felt 
that provision should be made for the never- 
dying soul. 

When Sabbath-schools were first institut- 
ed, he entered into the enterprise with all 
his heart. He was chosen an officer in the 
church at the age of twenty-eight, and died 
at twenty-nine. Few*nien accomplished more 
for the cause of Christ than this young man. 
It was true in his case, that "he lives long 
who answers life's great end." More than 
forty years have passed since his departure, 
but his memory is still fresh and fragrant. 
" The righteous shall be had in everlasting 
remembrance." 

This record shows that the good we may ac- 
complish does not depend upon the length of 
life. The pastor whose influence was brought 
to bear upon this young man died at the age 
of thh fcy-two, and the young man himself at 
twenty-nine. Spencer died at twenty, Pres-, 
ident Davies at thirty -seven, and Harlan 
Page at forty-three. Their usefulness did 
not depend upon the space of time that they 



30 



PASTOEAL REMINISCENCES. 



worked for Christ. In their influence, they 
are still living and acting for him. They are 
going about doing good. The sum of good 
that they have already done, or yet will do, 
no mortal man can estimate. 




ONE SOWETH, ANOTHER REAPETH. 31 



VIII. 

When Christ had conversed with the wom- 
an of Samaria, and enlightened her respect- 
ing his own character, her efforts brought 
numbers to listen to the words of Him who 
had told her all things that ever she did. 
They said to the woman, " Now we believe, 
not because of thy saying, for we have heard 
him ourselves, and do know that this is in- 
deed the Christ, the Saviour of the world." 

This successful effort of the woman led 
Christ to say, " One soweth, and another 
reapeth." As if he had said, The prophets 
and John the Baptist have sowed the seeds 
of instruction among the people, and taught 
them the principles of saving truth, and you 
my disciples, who succeed them, I will em- 
ploy in bringing men to embrace my doc- 



32 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

trine, thereby fulfilling the truths formerly 
revealed concerning me. 

When I was located in my first parish, I 
found some of the fruits of my predecessor's 
labors. He sowed, and I reaped the fruits of 
his labors. God gave him some souls for his 
hire. Among those brought in was a woman 
in middle life. At the time of my ordination, 
she was a sort of bishop among the women. 
She possessed native talents of a high order, 
and would naturally be a leader in any circle. 
She had clear apprehensions of divine truth 
and of the duties it enjoined, and was ready for 
every good word and work. She early com- 
menced female prayer-meetings, and cheer- 
fully contributed of her substance to every 
object that advanced the Redeemer's king- 
dom. She lived more than fourscore years, 
and came to her grave like a shock of corn 
fully ripe in its season. He that began a 
good work in her, carried it on until the day 
of Jesus Christ. " She was kept by the power 
of God through faith unto salvation." 

She died in the faith in which she had 
lived. Through the strength that Christ 
gave her, she triumphed over the last enemy. 



ONE SOWETH, ANOTHER REAPETH. 33 

She had the satisfaction of seeing both of 
her daughters brought into the kingdom of 
Christ before her departure. It pleases God 
to prepare men in the family for the church 
on earth, and for the church of the First-born 
in heaven. Let believing parents hold on to 
the promises of God. 

" Thus saith the Lord that made thee, and 
formed thee from the womb, which will help 
thee: Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and 
thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I 
will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and 
floods upon, the dry ground : I will pour my 
Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon 
thine offspring ; and they shall spring up as 
among the grass, as willows by the water- 
courses. One shall say, I am the Lord's ; and 
another shall call himself by the name of 
Jacob ; and another shall subscribe with his 
hand unto the Lord, and surname himself 
by the name of Israel." These promises 
are made to parents who bring up their 
children "in the nurture and admonition of 
the Lord." God's commands are, "Thou 
shalt teach them diligently unto thy chil- 
dren; and thou shalt talk of them when 

Pastoral Eem. 3 



34 



PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



thou sittest in thy house and when thou 
walkest by the way, and when thou liest 
down and when thou risest up." This con- 
stant teaching, accompanied with a consist- 
ent life, cannot fail to impress truth upon the 
hearts of children. ., ■ 




A WHOLE FAMILY SAVED. 35 



TX. 



In a family of my early ministry, consist- 
ing of a father, mother, and four daugh- 
ters, the mother only was pious. The eldest 
daughter, a promising young lady of eigh- 
teen, fell into a decline; and at length, as 
her pastor, I felt it to be my duty to apprize 
her of her danger, and entreat her to prepare 
for the scenes that were before her. She was 
surprised at the announcement, and thought 
it cruel in her pastor to give this intimation. 
But she was led to cry to God for mercy, and 
ask with great earnestness, " "What shall I do 
to be saved ?" She did not cry in vain. Her 
blessed Saviour gave her the peace that pass- 
eth all understanding. She thanked her pas- 
tor for his kindly warning, and wished to con- 
fess her Saviour before the world ; and this 



3G PASTOKAL KEMINISCENCES. 

she was permitted to do, in communion with 
a portion of the visible church on earth. 

When her father saw with what holy joy 
she was* filled, he could hold out no longer ; 
he cried to the same Jesus that enabled his 
daughter to triumph in Him, and God was 
pleased also to give him spiritual life. 

The other three daughters, one after an- 
other, became partakers of the like precious 
faith. ' The mother is now an aged pilgrim, 
still lingering on the shore, waiting for the 
coming of her Lord to take her to the other 
side. 

1. It is a cruel kindness to conceal from 
our sick friends their real danger. Had her 
danger been concealed from her, my young 
friend might have gone down to the grave 
impenitent, and lost her soul for ever. 

2. God often saves a household by the con- 
version of one member. " The kingdom of 
heaven is like leaven, which a woman hid 
in three measures of meal, until the whole 
was leavened." The wife in this family was 
first converted, and the leaven was diffused 
through the whole household. Oh what a 
blessing to have even one member of a fam- 



A WHOLE FAMILY SAVED. 



37 



ify pious. What a joyful meeting will that 
be, when a whole family shall come to mount 
Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon 
their heads, and sorrow and sighing shall 
for ever flee away. 




38 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

X. 

"J &<( Wvnih <rf[ pi* sfoall %vm^ %m/ f 

This world is governed by a wise and holy 
God. With our limited capacities, we cannot 
always see the reason of his doings. His 
ways are a mighty deep, his paths are in the 
sea, and his footsteps are not known. Men 
may think that they can thwart his purposes, 
but their puny strokes will rebound upon 
themselves. 

Saul of Tarsus, full of hatred against God, 
could not refrain from uttering threatening 
and slaughter against the disciples of the 
Lord. He received authority from the chief 
priests to go to Damascus, and bind men and 
women, and bring them bound to Jerusalem. 
Amid this mad rage, it pleased God to arrest 
him. This wrath of man God caused to praise 
him. Trembling and astonished, he cried, 
" Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ?" He 
was directed to go to Ananias to receive in- 
struction. Christ said, " He is a chosen ves- 



WRATH PRAISING GOD. 39 

sel unto me, to bear my name before the Gen- 
tiles and kings, and the children of Israel ; 
for I will show him how great things he must 
suffer for my name's sake." 

And straightway he preached Christ in the 
synagogues, that he is the Son of God. God 
turned the lion into a lamb, and the vulture 
into a dove. God overruled all this madness 
and rage to the furtherance of the gospel. 
Such scenes have been acted over from age 
to age. 

When the primitive gospel was brought 
back to one of the ancient desolations of 
Massachusetts, a prayer-meeting was insti- 
tuted. Such social gatherings had not ex- 
isted for two or three generations. They 
were looked upon by the mass of the inhab- 
itants as the fruit of fanaticism, and they 
warned the members of their families against 
going near them. He that sat in Moses' seat 
cautioned his people not to have any thing to 
do with these praying men, even in the trans- 
action of worldly business. 

Under the influence of this teaching, a man 
forbade his wife's going to the prayer-meet- 
ings. She felt that it was right to obey God 



40 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

rather tlian man, and persisted in performing 
her duty. This persistency excited the en- 
mity of his heart more and more, until he 
fastened the house to shut her out, and went 
to bed. He intended to put a stop to her 
going to the prayer-meeting. She however 
succeeded in finding an entrance to the house, 
and quietly retired. 

In the morning she rose early, and pre- 
pared breakfast as usual. Full of rage, he 
was hoping she would broach the subject of 
his fastening her out of the house; but she 
held her peace. This meekness and forbear- 
ance made him ashamed of his conduct, and 
brought him to think on his ways. Like Saul 
of Tarsus, he found that it was hard for him 
to kick against the pricks. He felt that he 
was persecuting Jesus of Nazareth, and that 
he himself, and not his wife, was to blame. 
He was brought to repentance and salvation, 
and into full sympathy with his wife and his 
wife's Saviour. 

On all proper occasions he was ready to 
testify that Jesus is the Son of God. He 
immediately withdrew from the society where 
" another gospel " was preached, and became 



WRATH PRAISING GOD. 



41 



a member of the church based upon the doc- 
trines of the fathers of New England. For 
years he was one of the most liberal support- 
ers of the doctrines of the pilgrims ; and he 
died in the full belief of the principles of the 
primitive faith. In the hour of his departure, 
they enabled him to triumph over death. 




42 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



XI. 

Men are, in no slight degree, the growth of 
circumstances. If the American Revolution 
had not occurred, George "Washington might 
have been esteemed in his neighborhood as a 
wealthy planter possessed of strong common- 
sense, but not as a Fabius in the field, or a 
wise statesman, or a sterling patriot. When 
he was made Commander-in-chief of the 
American armies, he told Congress that he 
did not consider himself as adequate to per- 
form the duties of such an office. If he should 
have any reverse of fortune, he wished them 
to remember his distrust of himself. He had 
not then been placed in a position of respon- 
sibility, and knew not what he could do. But 
in the course of the seven years' war he was 
developed, so that he stands in the first rank 
of the great and good men of the world. His , 
individual responsibility was tasked to the 



INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY. 43 

utmost. The scenes through which he passed 
brought out his latent energies. 

A lady whose writings have perhaps been 
more extensively read in the old and new 
world than those of any living author, began 
her literary course by publishing short stories 
in periodicals. Neither she nor her friends 
were aware of her graphic power. Her solic- 
itude for the colored race, and the perilous 
state of the country, were the means of devel- 
oping her faculties. 

The same is true of many young Christians. 
When Samuel J. Mills was brought into the 
kingdom of God, it was not known that 
within him was a dormant power to move the 
world. He said to a fellow-student, "You 
and I are little men ; but before we die we 
must make our influence felt on the other 
side of the globe." His public life was short, 
yet he did what he said he must do. 

Among the young men who came into my 
church, was one very modest and unassum- 
ing. He was much interested in our prayer- 
meetings and Bible-class, but without any 
marked trait of character. His early prom- 
ise was not so good as that of some other 



44 PASTOBAL REMINISCENCES. 

young men. "While he remained in a strong 
church, and the responsibility of sustaining 
religious institutions was shared by large 
numbers, his latent energies were not de- 
veloped. It required different circumstances 
to bring out the man. 

In the course of divine providence, his 
business required him to remove into another 
state. Here he was deprived of church priv- 
ileges. In the town wiiere he was located, 
there was no religious denomination that 
maintained public worship constantly. He 
had been accustomed to the privileges of the 
sanctuary, the prayer-meeting, and the Sab- 
bath-school. He had seen their blessed in- 
fluence in forming the character of the rising 
generation for time and eternity. He con- 
trasted the state of society destitute of the 
gospel with that from which he came, and 
saw the cause of the difference. His spirit 
was stirred within him when he saw the dese- 
cration of the Sabbath, heard the name of 
God profaned, and saw the intemperance of 
the people. He was determined to make an 
effort for God. He had no rest until he built 
a sanctuary, and established the institutions 



INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY. 45 

of religion. A church was gathered, a con- 
gregation collected, and the stated means of 
grace enjoyed. He felt his responsibility, and 
exerted his influence, making great personal 
sacrifices to accomplish the desire of his 
heart. Through the blessing of God upon 
his untiring efforts, that community is now 
favored with the preaching of the glorious 
gospel of the blessed God. 

This man's Christian character was de- 
veloped much better than his friends ex- 
pected. God placed him in such a position 
that all his faculties were taxed. 

Let us individually ask, Are all our talents 
consecrated to the service of our Redeemer? 
Our Lord at his coming will require his own 
with usury. Try not to throw off your re- 
sponsibility upon others. Remember that to 
your own Master you will stand or fall. 



46 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



XII. 

^wwvzmx fa a fvtmk Kiftfr* 

God is not confined to any time, or place, 
or method in calling men into his kingdom. 
He has access to the hearts of men, and can 
bring them to think on their ways, and turn 
them to the keeping of his testimonies, by 
the falling of a leaf, or by the singing of a 
bird. 

John Newton was converted on the coast 
of Africa, when engaged in the slave-trade. 
Augustine, a father of the fourth century, 
who was previously a dissipated young man, 
was converted by a passage of Scripture 
striking his mind with peculiar force : " Let 
us walk honestly, as in the day; not in riot- 
ing and drunkenness ; not in chambering and 
wantonness; not in strife and envying. But 
put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make 
no provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts 
thereof." 



THE POTASH KETTLE. 47 

The apostle Paul was arrested in his mad 
career of persecution. Claudius Buchanan, 
who started to make a tour of Europe, pur- 
posing to sustain himself by playing the vio- 
lin, came to London, heard John Newton 
preach, and became a Christian. 

When the doctrines of the pilgrims were 
carried back to one of the "old wastes" of 
Massachusetts, their descendants of the sixth 
or seventh generation had repudiated the 
faith of their fathers. They did not intend 
that this faith should again have a lodg- 
ment in their territory. Application was 
made for the Town Hall to preach the gospel, 
and it was refused. No place could be ob- 
tained but a dilapidated building. The upper 
story was partially repaired, but it had only a 
single floor, and the first story was used to 
stow away refuse articles. 

Among other things in this lumber-room 
was a potash kettle. Some who came to 
scoff, would get into this kettle and call it 
their pew. Here the preacher's voice in the 
evening service could be distinctly heard, 
while its occupants could not be seen. One 
of these scoffers, while in this position, heard 



48 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

as he never heard before. His sins found 
him out. Like Saul of Tarsus, he cried out, 
" Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" The 
Lord heard his cry, and gave him free re- 
mission of his sins. 

Straightway he preached the faith that he 
once labored to destroy. He said he "had 
done all he could to destroy the work of God, 
and now he would do all he could to coun- 
teract what he had done." All that saw it 
and heard of it were as much astonished as 
were the contemporaries of Paul. 

The gospel of Christ, in the early days of 
New England, produced such changes in the 
spiritual feelings of men. The Holy Ghost 
rendered the gospel " the power of God and 
the wisdom of God," when Cotton preached 
in Boston, Shepard at Cambridge, and Eliot 
at Roxbury. And among people where the 
faith of the Puritans is now preached, God 
still bears witness to his truth. The Holy 
Ghost gives efficacy to the preaching of the 
cross, and men are " created in Christ Jesus 
unto good works." But where the efficacy of 
atoning blood is denied, and the people have 
not heard that there is a Holy Ghost, they 



THE POTASH KETTLE. 49 

are as quiet as tlie grave-yard. There is no 
shaking among the dry bones. They are 
very many, and very dry. They are not 
covered with sinews and flesh, nor does the 
wind breathe upon the slain. 

"Where the prophet, in obedience to God's 
command, prophesies upon the dry bones, 
the wind will come and breathe upon the 
slain, and they will live. Nothing but the 
power of God can turn a heart of enmity to 
a heart of love. In every place where the 
gospel is preached in its fulness, souls are 
convinced of sin and are led to abhor it and 
forsake it. Their experience agrees with his 
who was converted in the potash kettle. 



Pastoral Rem. 



50 PASTOKAL KEMINISCENCES. 



XIII. 

f J*<> Fjrn^ut male f frwg* 

Among the families of my first pastorate 
was one in which the wife was pious, but the 
husband, though a moral man and an attend- 
ant on public worship, was opposed to vital 
godliness, and as in days of old, the seed of 
the bondwoman persecuted the seed of the 
free. 

Two or three years after my first acquaint- 
ance with them, the wife became dangerously 
ill. She was naturally timid, and greatly 
feared that she could not grapple with the 
king of terrors. This fear led her to a -care- 
ful examination of the foundation of her hope. 
The more she examined and prayed, the more 
she was satisfied that she had built upon the 
" chief Corner-stone," the " tried Stone, elect, 
precious;" and the inner man was renewed 
day by day. God was better to her than her 
fears. 



THE FEAEFUL MADE STKONG. 51 

When death came, her Saviour gave her 
dying grace. It was indeed triumphant. Her 
husband saw how a Christian could die. Then 
he cried, "Let me die the death of the 
righteous, and let my last end be like his." 
He sought and found the same Saviour. 

It was not a temporary impression, that 
passed away when his affliction ceased : it 
was a radical change of heart and life, that 
manifested itself during the space of thirty 
years. He was a man of good understanding 
and stability of character. He cordially 
embraced those doctrines that he formerly 
hated, and became an officer in the church, 
and filled his office well. 

No Christian example is lost. This Chris- 
tian wife prayed for the conversion of her 
husband, but did not live to see her prayers 
answered. God through her death brought 
life to the soul of that husband. She did not 
live or die in vain. "Walk with God, and tho 
leaven that is within you vrill diffuse itself ; 
others will take knowledge that you have 
been with Jesus. God may so manifest his 
grace in your dying hour, that you will ex- 
claim, " O death, where is thy sting?" 



52 PASTOEAL REMINISCENCES. 



XIV. 

God, in preparing his children for heaven, 
uses a variety of means. One he leads to 
repentance by affecting views of His good- 
ness. Such a one may for a long time have 
given no heed to His afflictive providences; he 
has turned a deaf ear to the voice of love and 
mercy, and grieved the Holy Spirit that 
strove with him. When he comes to himself, 
he cries, "Father, I have sinned against 
heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more 
worthy to be called thy son." Another is 
driven by the terrors of the Lord. "Flee 
from the wrath to come," sounds in his ears 
day and night. He does not stop to consult 
worldly wisdom, but flies to the cross as the 
only refuge from everlasting burnings. 

A lady who came into our church had been 
educated under religious training. Her for- 
mer pastor boarded with her father several 



EDWARDS' SEBMON. 53 

years, and hospitality was there extended to 
many of the clerical profession. 

At a private meeting on one occasion, her 
pastor read President Edwards' Sermon on 
the Eternity of Hell Torments. This was the 
sermon which, at Enfield, Conn., produced 
such marvellous effects upon the audience on 
a day of fasting and prayer. When the ser- 
mon commenced, the j r oung people in the 
gallery were light and trifling ; but before it 
closed, there was loud weeping in every part 
of the house. The tide of distress had risen 
so high, that an aged ministerial brother in 
the pulpit seized the preacher's coat, and 
inquired, "Is there no mercy, brother Ed- 
wards?" He then held up Christ as the 
Saviour of the lost. 

The reading of this sermon produced the 
same effect upon the mind of this young lady, 
as upon the people of Enfield. She felt that 
she deserved hell. She feared that she should 
not live to get home. For several days she 
had nothing in prospect but indignation and 
wrath, tribulation and anguish. She felt that 
it would be just in God to send her to hell, 
and that even there she would praise him. 



54 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

She did not understand that this was sub- 
mission. Her will was now bowed to the 
divine will ; Christ was to her the end of the 
law for righteousness. The impulse which 
she first received from the Holy Spirit, gave 
a permanent type to her character. She ever 
felt her utter unworthiness. She married a 
minister, and was the sharer of his joys and 
sorrows more than forty years. In her last 
sickness, the hymn, 

"Rock of ages, cleft for me," 

w r as read to her. When we came to the 
lines, 

"In rny hand no price I bring, 
Simply to thy cross I cling," 

the reader saw an animation on her counte- 
nance, and paused. She said, " Yes, yes ; that 
is it, that is it." 

Sound conversions are based upon the 
doctrines of the Bible. Edwards' sermon on 
the Eternity of Hell Torments presents one 
of the most awful subjects in the whole sys- 
tem of theology. The law of God is clearly 
unfolded in its spirituality, and the justice of 
God in the condemnation of the sinner is 
clearly demonstrated. The sinner is taught 



EDWARDS' SERMON. 55 

that the' law which pronounces death upon 
him is "holy, just, and good." "When he is 
brought to this state, he is prepared to receive 
Christ as the end of the law for his righteous- 
ness. He who builds on this foundation will 
never be moved. The floods may come and 
the winds blow, but his house will stand. 

Men are often persuaded by the terrors of 
the Lord. These terrors drive them to de- 
spair of salvation by their own works, but 
not to despair of salvation by Christ. Faith 
in his atoning blood allays the fears, and all 
is peace. 



56 PASTOKAL REMINISCENCES. 

XV. 
fmw&l Mpt 

The woman of Samaria, who conversed 
with Christ at the well, first embraced the 
Saviour herself. Christ had announced him- 
self to her as the Messiah. The woman saith 
unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which 
is called Christ ; when he is come, he will tell 
us all things. Jesus saith unto her, " I that 
speak unto thee am he." The annunciation 
of this fact filled her with joy. She could not 
keep it to herself. She published these tid- 
ings abroad. She wished all her friends and 
neighbors to participate her joy. She was 
successful in awakening their attention to this 
wonderful man. By this personal effort, she 
brought great numbers to Jesus. 

Personal effort has in our day sought and 
found those who were wandering from their 
God. By such efforts as these, Harlan Page 
brought a hundred individuals to Christ. He 
did it not by one mighty effort, but by inces- 



PERSONAL EFFORT. 51 

sant labor, He would begin to-day with a 
friend, see liirn again to-morrow, and so per- 
severe in his efforts until that friend came to 
Christ. "Whether he took a longer or short- 
er period to accomplish his object, the effort 
was not relinquished until it reached its 
result. This made his entire life a special 
effort. 

Among my parishioners was an amiable 
young man, whose attention was early called 
to religion ; but he was full of cares, and said, 
"Go thy way for this time; when I have a 
convenient season I will call for thee." 

Ten years passed away and he found him- 
self more deeply immersed in the world than 
he was before. It pleased the Lord to afflict 
him by removing a beloved child. This 
brought him again to think on his ways. I 
saw him in the burial-yard erecting a mon- 
ument to the memory of his departed child. 
The thought occurred, now will be a fit time 
to speak to him again upon the subject of his 
soul's salvation. I invited him to come to the 
inquiring-meeting on the next evening. After 
some hesitation and apparent reluctance, he 
promised to come ; but he afterwards inform- 



58 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

ed me that he should not have come, if it had 
not been for his oath's sake. He came ; we 
had a free conversation, and he promised to 
come again. He came again, and it was evi- 
dent that his impressions were deepened. 
He was more ready than before to acknow- 
ledge his sins, but as yet he was blind to the 
way of salvation. He said he had " always 
thought it hard that he must toil through 
life, lie down in the grave, and all dark be- 
yond." 

The third time he came, he said a change 
had come over him, but he did not know what 
it was. Light seemed to shine from the other 
side of the grave. The next time he came, 
he said he was " not ashamed of Christ any- 
where." For forty years he has been a burn- 
ing and a shining light in the church. 

He was saved by personal effort. Had not 
special pains been taken to urge him to come 
to a decision, he might, to human view, have 
died crying, " No hope, no hope." May this 
successful effort induce others to go and do 
likewise. " Run, speak to that young man.' 



BUILD THE OLD WASTES. 59 

XVI. 

The prophet Isaiah predicted the blessed 
effects of preaching the gospel accompanied 
by the Holy Spirit. " And they shall build 
the old wastes, they shall raise rip the for- 
mer desolations ; and they shall repair the 
waste cities, the desolations of many years." 
We have still many desolations where once 
the gospel was preached in its purity, and the 
Holy Spirit created souls anew. 

It was my privilege to labor for several 
years in one of these ancient desolations. 
Through two generations the gospel had been 
gradually frittered away. "Another gospel" 
had been privily brought in, even " denying 
the Lord who bought them." The religion 
which the gospel of Christ produces had 
nearly died out. Family prayers were main- 
tained in only two houses in the town, one of 
which was the minister's. 

At this crisis some individuals had been 



60 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

away to reside, and been converted to Christ. 
They returned; but not to be satisfied with 
such instructions as were given in the town 
church. The first meeting they held was a 
prayer-meeting, attended by eight females in 
an upper room, on the afternoon of a Sab- 
bath. The leader of this meeting had been 
converted in Boston, under Dr. Griffin's min- 
istry. She found that- there was no concord 
between Christ and Belial, and that he that 
believeth had no part with an infidel. There 
was no agreement of the temple of God with 
idols. 

Soon it pleased God to pour out his Spirit, 
and twenty individuals were hopefully con- 
verted. This greatly enraged the preacher 
of the town church. His heart was full of 
enmity against the disciples of the Lord. No 
Saul of Tarsus ever hated the Nazarenes 
more than he did. But his attempts to de- 
stroy the primitive faith were but " kicking 
against the pricks." The more he raged, the 
more the work grew. Persecution never 
harms real Christians. True religion is like 
the palm-tree, the more it is oppressed the 
more it grows. 



BUILD THE OLD WASTES. 61 

The woman converted under Dr. Griffin's 
ministry, who was the leader in this enter- 
prise, now lives, at the age of eighty. The 
church which she prayed into existence has 
been many years self-sustaining, and has 
counted one hundred members. The congre- 
gation is large, and has a Sabbath-school of 
two hundred and thirty. 

The influence that she exerted upon her 
family friends was highly salutary. Two 
brothers and one sister were among the early 
converts. When God has a purpose to ac- 
complish, he uses such agents as he pleases. 
He can do his will by few or by many. When 
he purposes that the walls of Jericho shall 
fall, he does it by the blowing of rams' horns. 
When he determines to build an old waste, 
he raises a mother in Israel to pray and 
labor, and the strong-hold of Satan is carried 
by assault. 

The good that men do lives after them. 
Dr. Griffin ceased to be pastor of Park-street 
church, Boston, more than forty-five years 
ago, and twenty-five years has been in the 
better world. But " he being dead, yet speak- 
eth." Forty years ago a female, converted 



62 PASTOBAL KEMINISCENCES. 

by his instrumentality, returned to her native 
place, found the blind leading the blind, and 
fearing that both would fall into the ditch, 
she cried to God for help. He heard her cry, 
and sent salvation. 

Perhaps Dr. Griffin was not informed in 
this world of this result of his ministry. 
Doubtless he has long since rejoiced in 
heaven over the tidings of the conversion of 
these sinners. But the results of his labors 
are not to stop in our day. , These converts 
will tell the story of their conversion to their 
children, and they again to theirs. It will be 
transmitted from generation to generation, 
until the close of time. No effort to do good 
will die with its author. Dr. Griffin's influ- 
ence will live in his converts not only in this 
world, but 

While life and thought and being last, 
Or immortality endures. 



PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 63 



XVII. 

The Greek word rendered mystery means 
something that does not lie open to common 
view, but is hid, or concealed, not wholly, but 
in some respects, so that men can have only 
dark and imperfect views of it; whether the 
darkness or imperfection of their views arises 
from the nature of the thing itself, or from 
obscurity in the revelation of it. It cannot 
be said that a thing is altogether unknown 
while it is a mystery. Thus it was a mystery, 
under the Old Testament dispensation, that 
God would call the Gentiles and receive them 
into his church ; yet it was plainly revealed 
in the Old Testament, that "God would give 
the heathen to the Messiah for his inherit- 
ance, and that in his name the Gentiles should 
trust. 

There are events in the providence of God 
that are mysterious at the time, but are after- 



64 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

"wards explained. The events in the history 
of Jacob's family were for a time perfectly 
mysterious. "When it was proposed by his 
sons to take Benjamin to Egypt, he exclaim- 
ed, "Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and 
ye will take Benjamin away; all these things 
are against me." Their subsequent history 
cleared up the mystery. When Joseph made 
himself known to his brethren, he said, " Now 
therefore be ye not angry, nor grieved with 
yourselves that ye sold me hither; for God 
did send me before you to preserve life." 

In the day in which w T e live, events often 
take place in the providence of God which, 
at the time, are mysterious; but which sub- 
sequent events make plain. 

I once appointed a neighborhood meeting 
in a private house, to accommodate an old 
lady who was unable to go out in the even- 
ing. In selecting a passage of Scripture 
from which to speak, I opened to the words 
of Christ, " Think not that I have come to 
send peace on earth: I have not come to send 
peace, but a sword ;" closing with the dec- 
laration, " A man's foes shall be those of his 
own household.' 5 I attempted to find some 



PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 65 

otlier passage, but my mind could not fix on 
any other; this must be the subject. 

It was shown that the gospel was not 
blamable for making division in families. 
Those who espoused the cause of Christ did 
right, and those who rejected him did wrong. 
If the enmity of the human heart was excited 
against Christ, its wickedness was very great. 
It was not the fault of Christ, or of his follow- 
ers, but of those who opposed him. 

A week before this meeting was held, the 
wife of an unconverted man had attended our 
prayer and inquiring meeting. She was later 
in reaching home than he expected, and he 
asked her where she had been. She replied, 

that she had been into Mr. M 's, at an 

inquiring meeting. This excited his wrath, 
and he exclaimed, " That is a pretty business. 
I would not be such a fool as to go about 
telling how I feel." The next week she went 
to the neighborhood meeting ; and on her 
return home, found her husband reading this 
very passage. He said he had been reading 
it all the evening, but could not understand 
it. She was fresh from the exposition, and 
unfolded its meaning. He said, " If there is 

Pastoral Esm. 5 



66 



PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



any tiling in this orthodox religion, I wish 

you would send for Mr. M ." She sent, 

and I saw her husband for the first time. 
The next Sabbath after our interview he 
came to church, and was soon after con- 
verted. 

It would seem that God directed my mind 
to those words of Christ, and his to the read- 
ing and studying of them. It was no pre- 
concerted plan of ours. When I was sent 
for, I was surprised. It was a mystery. The 
subsequent events explained it. The work 
was of God. God moved upon both of our 
minds. To Him be all the glory. 







SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES. 67 



XVIII. 

The Bible is like the gold mines of Cali- 
fornia, the more they are wrought the more 
they yield, the deeper they are penetrated 
the more profitable is the mining. The Bible 
if read as a task, without thinking and pray- 
ing, will probably little profit the reader. 
This is not because it is not fitted to impart 
light to the understanding. It is designed by 
God to be a light to our feet and a lamp to 
our path. 

" The law of the Lord is perfect, convert- 
ing the soul; the testimony of the Lord is 
sure, making wise the simple ; the statutes of 
the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart ; the 
commandment of the Lord is pure, enlighten- 
ing the eyes ; the fear of the Lord is clean, 
enduring for ever ; the judgments of the Lord 
are true and righteous altogether." 

Bev. Mr. Wilbur, who suggested the estab- 



68 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

lishmeht of Bible Classes for the investigation 
of the holy Scriptures, started a thought that 
by God's blessing has saved thousands of 
souls. Soon after this suggestion went 
abroad, I adopted it and reduced it to prac- 
tice. I preached a sermon from the injunc- 
tion of Christ, " Search the Scriptures." I 
gave reasons why the Scriptures should be 
searched, and at the close appointed a meet- 
ing for the formation of a Bible-class. At 
the time appointed a respectable number 
came together for this purpose. 

Among this number was a middle-aged 
man, possessing a fine understanding. I 
thought that this man, who w T as a farmer at 
a very busy season of the year, must have 
something on his mind, else he would not have 
come. The reason he gave was summarily 
this : " When you gave an invitation to meet 
to form a Bible-class, I was determined to 
come. I always had a Bible in my house, 
and I sometimes read it, but I have never 
read with a view to see what God says to me 
as an individual. This I am now determined 
to do." 

That determination was faithfully carried 



SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES. 69 

into execution. This man was not double- 
minded and unstable in all his ways. He was 
not one that was always learning and never 
able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 
He did not go through the world halting be- 
tween two opinions. "When he made up his 
mind it was a fixed fact. He sat down to 
study the Bible, and form his character under 
its influence. 

This narrative teaches us that the Bible is 
a book adapted to the wants of man. Its 
Author is the author of the human soul. "Who 
can understand a complicated piece of ma- 
chinery if the inventor and maker does not ? 
If it is out of repair, he can put it in order. 
God is the maker of the human intellect and 
the human heart. This machinery is out of 
repair. It is grandeur in ruins. The Bible 
informs us how this moral machinery became 
disorganized. It also shows us how it can 
be restored; and that upon our application, 
the Holy Spirit will enlighten us into the 
knowledge of the truth. We are also taught, 
that to be instructed by the Bible we must 
attend to its teachings. 

My parishioner had always had a Bible in 



70 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

his house, but had never read it to see what 
God said to him. How many dust-covered 
Bibles are there in our land that are sealed 
books ? They are never consulted with ref- 
erence to personal salvation. There is no 
charm in the book unread to save the soul. 
It must be opened and read upon our knees, 
imploring, " O Lord, open our understandings, 
that we may understand the Scriptures ; open 
our eyes, that we may behold wondrous things 
out of thy law." 

The chart and compass will not guide the 
mariner unless he carefully watches them, and 
makes observations by the sun and the stars. 
The Bible is both a chart and a compass to 
guide over the ocean of life, but they will not 
bring us to the desired haven unless they are 
implicitly followed. 

Thousands who were upon the voyage of 
life without chart or compass, driven about 
by every wind, have received these aboard 
the bark in which they are sailing, and are 
now by their aid on the direct course to the 
haven of lasting rest. 



WHITEFIELD'S CONVEKT. 71 

XIX. 

Befoke Mr. "Whitefield and his associates 
arose, vital godliness in England and Amer- 
ica was at a low ebb. Formalism was prev- 
alent both in the established church and 
among dissenters. 

A company of young men now appeared in 
one of the English universities in whom prim- 
itive piety was revived. By the scoffers of 
that day they were named the " Godly Club." 
They governed their lives by the rules of the 
gospel. They had order or method in all 
that they did, and hence they were denom- 
inated " Methodists." "Whitefield and Wesley 
were the leaders in this company. 

Mr. Wliitefield came to New England in 
1740. He landed at Newport, Rhode Island, 
where he met Rev. Mr. Clapp, a Congrega- 
tional minister, a native of Dorchester, Mass., 
and said that he thought he saw in this man 
what kind of people the old Puritans were. 



72 PASTOEAL REMINISCENCES. 

He extended his visit to Boston. The gov- 
ernor went out to Roxbury to meet him and 
bid him welcome to this Puritan city. The 
spirit of Winthrop, Cotton, and Wilson had 
not then died out. All the ministers except 
Dr. Chauncey opened their hearts and pul- 
pits to this evangelist. The Holy Spirit de- 
scended upon these churches, the whole town 
was moved at his coming, and he labored 
with great success. 

Mr. Whitefield extended his preaching 
tours to many country towns. Among his 
hearers in one of the towns of Middlesex 
county, was a girl of thirteen. Under ' his 
ardent preaching her heart was touched, and 
she received an impression that formed her 
character for time and eternity. She was 
not like a certain man who, in a state of 
partial intoxication, meeting Mr. Whitefield, 
said, " Mr. Whitefield, I am very glad to see 
you; you converted me a year ago." Mr. 
Whitefield replied, "You look like some of 
my work ; manifestly God never converted 
you." 

It was not so with my aged and venerable 
mother in Israel. Her goodness was not like 



WHITEFIELD'S CONVERT. 73 

the morning cloud, or the early dew that 
soon passeth away. Her conversion was 
tested by the vicissitudes of more than four- 
score years. She had an abiding principle 
that governed her whole life. She brought 
forth fruit in old age. 

In the latter part of her life she became 
blind, but her spiritual vision was not obscured. 
Talk to her of Whitefield or President Ed- 
wards, and she would be quite young again. 
In the part of the town where she resided, 
there were few who sympathized with her, 
yet she stood firm for the doctrines of the 
cross. She was " faithful among the faith- 
less." She was strong in the Lord, and in 
the power of his might. She did not live nor 
die in vain. She exerted a salutary influence 
on her family, and lived to see five daughters 
brought into the kingdom of Christ. They 
lived in ftie faith of their mother. Some of 
the daughters are reunited with their mother 
on the other side of Jordan. One of her 
grandsons has filled the chair of a theologi- 
cal professor in a seminary at the west and 
at the east. 

The seed which Mr. Whitefield sowed more 



74 PASTOKAL REMINISCENCES. 

than a century ago still vegetates, and will 
continue to be propagated until the second 
coming of the Son of man. " Blessed are the 
dead who die in the Lord; yea, saith the 
Spirit, that they may rest from their labors ; 
and their works do follow them," not only in 
the world to come, but their influence is felt 
in this world. " The memory of the just is 
blessed." 







A CONVERTED IRISHMAN. 75 



XX. 

It was predicted of Christ, that his name 
should be great among the Gentiles, and that 
in him should the Gentiles trust. Ireland, as 
well as the rest of the gentile world, is one 
day to be given to Christ. All the sons of 
Erin in that day, whether they remain on the 
emerald isle or emigrate to other countries, 
are to crown Jesus Lord of all. We now oc- 
casionally see some of the first fruits of Ire- 
land consecrated to Christ. This shows that 
the Irish mind i§ reached by the Holy Ghost 
as well as that of other nations, kindreds, and 
tongues. 

I once employed a son of Erin who had 
lately arrived in this country. Upon inquir- 
ing what views he had of himself, he replied 
that he had a good heart ; he did not wish to 
harm anybody. He seemed to think that if 
his external conduct was decent, all was well. 



76 PASTOEAL "REMINISCENCES. 

In those days we liad a number of young 
men who cooperated with their pastor in ef- 
forts to save men, laboring to bring them to 
Jesus. They invited this young Irishman to 
come to the inquiry-meeting. The first time 
that he came, he still held to the same opin- 
ion of the goodness of his heart. He did not 
understand the spirituality of the law. He 
was still "alive without the law." But he 
was led to see that the law of God is exceed- 
ing broad ; that it takes cognizance of the 
thoughts of the heart, as well as the external 
acts. He expressed a desire to do right, and 
to know the way of salvation, and followed 
up the inquiry-meeting. 

The instructions that he received excited 
inquiry. He said he heard the young men 
with whoni he was at work talking about 
being "born again," but he did not know 
what it meant. He never heard anybody 
talk about it in his country. Light was 
gradually let into his mind, and he saw the 
wickedness of his own heart. . He saw it to 
be " bad ; very bad." The fancied goodness 
of his heart disappeared like the darkness of 
night before the rising sun. 



A CONVERTED IRISHMAN. 77 

He came to the conclusion that his heart 
was all wicked. Such a heart could never 
pass through the gate into a holy heaven. 

He now deeply felt the necessity of an 
almighty Saviour. Nothing could cleanse 
from pollution but the atoning blood of Je- 
sus. Nothing could change* his heart but 
the Holy Ghost. He now esteemed it " a 
faithful saying, and worthy of all accepta- 
tion, that Jesus Christ came into the world 
to save sinners." 

At length he came to the inquiry-meeting 
with a new song in his mouth. While he 
spoke the language of Canaan, it was in the 
Hibernian style : " I feel a good deal more 
content in my mind than I did. I feel one 
high gratification in my mind. I have found 
Jesus Christ, the best thing I have found in 
all Ameriky." 

Our Irish brother was not mistaken in the 
value he put upon the pearl of great price he 
had found. In due time he publicly espoused 
the cause of his dear Redeemer. He learned 
to read, and joined the young men's Bible- 
class. His greafc motive in learning to read 
w^as, that he might peruse God's word for 



78 PASTOKAL REMINISCENCES. 

himself. He had a good native understand- 
ing, and often asked pertinent questions. 
He led a very circumspect life. 

After lie had laid by a sum of money, lie 
sailed for Ireland, to bring some of his friends 
i to this country of his adoption. The ship in 
which he sailed was never heard from. Prob- 
ably the ship and all that sailed in her went 
to the bottom of the ocean. 

He was not lost, as he would have been if 
he had not found Jesus Christ in America. 
He went to that Jesus whom he so much 
loved. Jesus went to prepare a place for all 
his disciples, that where he is, there they may 
be also. There they will behold his glory. 
His soul is safe, and his body is not lost. 
"When the Son of man calls those in their 
graves, and they come forth, the sea will give 
up its dead. 

"Oh, glorious hour! Oh, blest abode! 
I shall be near, and like my God ; . 
And flesh and sin no more control 
The sacred pleasures of my soul. 

My flesh shall slumber in the ground 
Till the last trumpet's joyful sound : 
Then burst the chains with sweet surprise, 
And in my Saviour's image rise." 



A DIVIDED HOUSEHOLD. 19 



XXL 
| $,tm f $ Fm ui{ f fog <^ fte fluw f att$${rM, 

Jesus said, "I am not come to send peace 
on earth, but a sword. For I am come to 
set a man at variance against his father, and 
the daughter against her mother;" and "a 
man's foes shall be they of his own house- 
hold." Where one member of a family em- 
braces Christ, it often excites the enmity of 
the human heart, which rises in rebellion 
against God and all the friends of God. 
Whatever the ties of natural affection, they 
are sundered when their friends come out 
decidedly for Christ. 

In the history of the progress of religion 
in this apostate world in times of persecu- 
tion, fathers have delivered up sons, and sons 
their fathers, to the persecutors. They have 
stood by consenting to their death. Perse- 
cution has made sad havoc of family rela- 



80 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 

tions. In tlie clay in which we live, Chris- 
tianity often produces similar effects. 

Such a case occurred among my parishion- 
ers. A wife felt constrained by the love of 
Christ to own her Saviour before men. She 
made up her mind to offer herself as a can- 
didate for admission to the church. This 
was to be on Sabbath evening. But it ex- 
cited the enmity of her husband; he spent 
the whole Sabbath in murmuring against his 
wife and cursing her. 

Towards evening he began to think, What 
am I about ? What has my wife done, that 
I should feel so towards her ? Has she not 
done right ? He could not answer in the neg- 
ative. His conscience condemned him, and 
he began to cry out for mercy. I was sent 
for the next day, and found him in great dis- 
tress. He was down upon his knees, beg- 
ging for pardoning mercy. He continued 
in this state several days. God caused him 
to pass through deep waters, but at length 
granted him deliverance. Then he gloried 
in nothing but the cross of Christ. 

He became a constant attendant on public 
worship, which he had neglected for years. 



A DIVIDED HOUSEHOLD. 81 

I gave him the tract, Parley the Porter. This 
he read again and again. It warned him 
against the wiles of the devil. In his conver- 
sation, he often referred to it. In his estima- 
tion, there was no other such book. 

An incident occurred that showed how 
much he enjoyed the preaching of the gos- 
pel. On the day of the annual May train- 
ing, he was at work in a field near the pa- 
rade-ground, where he distinctly heard mar- 
tial music. He accosted a brother who was 
passing by, and said, " That is good music. 
It is almost equal to preaching." There was 
an excitement about martial music, but it 
did not exhilarate him as the preaching of 
the gospel did. He formerly had no relish 
for spiritual and divine things; but his love 
for them became no transient emotion, that 
endured for a little while and then died away. 
He grew in knowledge and in grace. He was 
poor in this wofld, but rich in faith and good 
works. 



Pastoral Rem. 



82 PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



The incidents related in this volume are 
not fictitious ; nor did they occur in a foreign 
country, nor in the remote ages of antiquity, 
but in the age in which we live, and many of 
the persons referred to are still with us. 

In the various cases narrated, it is evident 
that there are diversity of operations, but the 
same Spirit. All have not the conviction of 
sin in the same degree ; but all who are taught 
from above, see themselves to be guilty and 
condemned before God. They cast no re- 
proaches upon God as having given them a 
tyrannical law. No, though it condemns them, 
they pronounce it holy, just, and good. They 
with one voice cry, 

"Should sudden vengeance seize my breath, 
I must pronounce thee just in death ; 
And if my soul were sent to hell, 
Thy righteous law approves it well." 

The Christian experiences of the individ- 
uals referred to in these narratives present 



CONCLUSION. 83 

essentially the same views of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. By the law they are all condemned ; 
but in Christ Jesus there is no condemna- 
tion. He is " the end of the law for right- 
eousness to every one who believes." Sal- 
vation is not by the law, but by grace. By 
the deeds of the law no one can be justi- 
fied. If he offends in one point, the whole 
law lies against him. No man liveth, and 
sinneth not. The great company whom the 
revelator saw, out of every nation, kindred, 
and tongue, were washed and made white in 
the blood of the Lamb. There is no blood 
but His that can cleanse us from our pollu- 
tion. This cleanses from all sin. Of all the 
persons whose religious history is given in 
this book, it may be said, Christ was their 
"wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and 
redemption." He was their all in all. 

These narratives may afford instruction to 
inquiring minds. Many persons have erro- 
neous views of the Christian character. By 
reading the Christian experience of others, 
they may be instructed. They see that all 
Christians have not those ecstatic views with 
which some are privileged. Godly sorrow 



84 



PASTORAL REMINISCENCES. 



for sin is real sorrow, although not as deep 
in some as in others. Faith in Christ is real, 
if it is not as strong as in some other cases. 
The true Christian is really taught of God. 

It is with the hope of leading others to 
Christ that I have penned these pastoral 
reminiscences. I wish to leave something 
behind me that, after I am dead, may speak 
to the generation following, so "that they 
may set their hope in God." 




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